“We’re Dancing, Baby!”

…you overheard that Cardinal Edwin O’Brien called Head Coach Jimmy Patsos last night to congratulate him.

…you screamed when Patsos walked up the sidewalk from Reitz Arena.

…you screamed louder when the bus full of men’s basketball players arrived.

…you couldn’t stop screaming when you saw the players carrying the MAAC trophy gleaming in the sun up the steps to Maryland Hall so everyone could see it.

…you joined the crowd yelling “Speech! Speech! Speech!”

…you heard Patsos say, “I wish Father was here because I really think three years ago when he made us Loyola University, he took us to another level.” (Rev. Brian F. Linnane, S.J., is meeting with alumni in California.)

…you listened as Susan Donovan, executive vice president, thanked the cheerleaders, students, and alumni who came to the game: “And we could sense everybody back home was there, sending texts and emails. It was just a special time.”

…you know that Patsos needs a better phone. “Stop texting me. I don’t have any more room on my phone,” he joked with the crowd.

…you smiled as Donovan praised the Greyhounds players. “We could not have been better represented by these men and the coaching staff. It was impressive from the beginning to the end… it made Loyola proud,” she said. “They have started a legacy, and it’s because they’re a team. They all work together and they represent us well. So let’s go to the dance.”

…you heard Jimmy Patsos invite you to cheer on Loyola in the NCAA Tournament next week: “Anybody that wants to come on the trip, I hope you can make it.”

…you wondered how the rally would come to an end. Then you heard one of the players yell, “We’re dancing, baby!”

…you congratulated the coach, and he smiled and said, “It’s what the University needs. But it’s not just what it needs. It’s what it deserves.”